Wellington, later known as Tye, was a small unincorporated railroad community on the Great Northern Railway in northeastern King County, Washington. Founded in 1893, it was located at the west portal of the original Cascade Tunnel under Stevens Pass. It is infamous for being the site of the March 1, 1910, Wellington avalanche, the worst avalanche in United States history, in which 96 people died. (The number of deaths is a matter of dispute. Newspapers of the time reported 118 deaths in blazing headlines. It is said that the railroad itself persuaded officials to lower the death count in an attempt to reduce the significance of the event. While this seems unlikely, so does renaming the town, which they did do.) After the disaster, the town's name was changed to Tye, after the nearby Tye River, because of the negative connotation of the original name. Tye was abandoned in 1929 when the second Cascade Tunnel came into use.
This ghost town went on to have an elementary school built and named after it. Wellington Elementary is an elementary school in the Northshore School District.
About PIHA:
PIHA, Paranormal Investigations of Historic America (www.pihausa.com ), was created specifically for paranormal investigations of public historic sites and museums that have a history of paranormal activity. PIHA is in the process of creating a series of DVD's that feature the museums, public historical sites and communities in Washington State. There are three regions in Washington State that will be featured. The first region is "Western Washington", the second is "The Olympic Peninsula" and the third region is "Eastern Washington".
PIHA is made up of a small group of experienced, dedicated paranormal investigators who have a passion for history and an interest in the phenomena of the possible existence of paranormal activity. Our approach, equipment and procedures for paranormal investigating is primarily based on the use of technologically advanced electronic equipment and scientific logic in obtaining evidence of possible paranormal activity.
On behalf of the volunteer paranormal investigators of PIHA, I invite you to experience Washington State's amazing historical sites and museums like never before. Through our process of networking with local historical societies, museums and registered, public historical sites, PIHA hopes to encourage public interest in Washington State's exciting history and the process and technology utilized in scientific paranormal investigations.
PIHA was created with two goals in mind:
1. PIHA hopes to bring Washington Stateâs history to life by attempting to obtain significant evidence of these strange occurrences. Utilizing the latest in today's electronic technology and dedicated paranormal investigators, we are accomplishing this objective, one public historical site at a time.
2. PIHA wants to stimulate additional interest in residents and visitors to Washington State's fascinating history. Our goal is to encourage individuals, families, schools and community organizations to visit these (and other) historical locations for a better understanding of our state's history and the people who made it and maybe have a personal paranormal experience along the way!
PIHA is not out to prove or disprove the existence of possible paranormal activity, but to publish any significant evidence collected at an investigation. Many people who think that something paranormal exist, physics and logic can debunk. That said, occasionally PIHA obtains evidence that neither physics nor logic applies. When this occurs, we classify it as paranormal evidence and let each individual decide for himself what to believe or not believe.
Wherever your travels in Washington take you, best wishes for a "Trip to the Extraordinary".
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